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the capital city of Austin (see photos). Of special interest is the oldest known photograph taken in 1826 by Joseph Nicéphore Nièpce that is on display at the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas in Austin. Another noteworthy item in this museum is one of the Gutenberg Bibles still in existence. Between 1452 and 1455, Johannes Gutenberg printed 180 copies. 48 of them still exist, of which only 21 are complete. This two volume bible, printed on paper is one of them.
manuscript and file archives but instead the museum offered a touring exhibition of the works by Burgess (Jess) Collins (1923-2004) who is known for his elaborate collages using old book illustrations and comic strips particularly, the strip 'Dick Tracy,' which he used to make his own strip 'Tricky Cad'). Collin's final work, Narkissos, is a complex, beautifully-rendered 6'x5' drawing owned by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
grand mansions of earlier prominent citizens were quite interesting (see slide show). However, the tower at the University of Texas-Austin was closed so were unable to get a panorama shot of the city from there.
2¾ mile Turkey Creek trail through the forests and along the creek. This trail is one of twelve in and around Austin specifically designed for dogs without leashes!
left Round Rock on March 5th heading for Fredericksburg, Texas (see travel route). |
Fredericksburg, known as Friedrichsburg until the mid 1880’s, was founded by John O. Meusebach (Baron Otfried Hans von Meusebach) in 1846, who was the Commissioner-General of the Mainzer Adelsvereins (Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas) (< - -please click). Other interesting articles concerning these early immigrants can be found at: 1- http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/AA/ufa1.html (< - -please click). 2- http://www.hal-pc.org/~dcrane/txgenweb/vereinproject.htm (< - -please click). We stayed in Fredericksburg for a week. The campground was crowded and tight but nevertheless it was a very interesting week. The weather turned colder and we began our tour of Fredericksburg with a visit to the Vereins Kirche Museum which is a reconstructed “coffee mill church,” eight-sided structure built in 1847, the first public building in Fredericksburg that served as house of worship for all denominations, school, and meeting hall (see photos) and (http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM302K) (< - - please click). This link contains a further link concerning the German/Comanche Peace Treaty which is the only treaty between white settlers and Native Americans that has never been broken. A sculpture commemorating this event is in a small park behind the museum. Afterwards we drove ten miles to the see the town of Luckenbach (< - - please click) and (see photos). On the way back we took a different route, which took us on unpaved roads, through a ranch and eventually back to Fredericksburg. Friday was spent on household chores but on Saturday the weather was sunny and mild so we went to Enchanted Rock State Park north of Fredericksburg, which is best described at (http://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Enchanted_Rock) (< - - please click) (also see photos). Our next museum visit was the Pioneer Museum that offered a detailed insight into the lives of the German settlers, with a vast collection of artifacts displayed in the original timbered buildings. It was quite interesting to speak with the guides; a couple in their 80’s whose ancestors came to Texas with the Mainzer Adelsverein in the 1840’s. This couple represents a portion of the local population that continues to be fluent in German, although 160 years have gone by. They speak a dialect called Texasdeutsch (< - - please click). Neither of them had ever been to Germany. On the following day we visited the National Museum of the Pacific War (< - - please click) which is located in Fredericksburg. The WWII Pacific Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz was born in Fredericksburg. The museum is located in the former Nimitz Hotel; which was owned and operated by Admiral Nimitz’s grandfather, also a German immigrant. The museum contains a vast collection of Pacific War artifacts as well as a Peace Garden which was a gift from Japan (see photos). After having built up an appetite, we went to the “Ausländer” restaurant for some alleged German cuisine. Only once (in Florida) have we found a place in the US that could possibly compete with a Gasthaus in Germany. Maybe it was the Paulaner Hefeweizen on draft that made the Schnitzels taste authentic. The side dishes weren’t quite compatible (red cabbage and potato pancakes), but tasty. The Apfelstrudel for dessert didn’t quite measure up. Fort Martin Scott (active from 1843 to 1853) is located on the outskirts of Fredericksburg. It was built to serve as protection for the settlers. Today it serves as a museum with original and reconstructed buildings (see photos). They even let Lobo inside! We left Fredericksburg on March 12th and drove to Brownwood Lake State Park (see travel route). We were still in the Hill Country but it began to get a bit flatter with prairie grass, live oak trees, cattle and goats. Along the way between Brady and Brownwood we passed the sign that marked the geographic center of Texas. After arriving at Brownwood Lake we discovered that this area has no coverage for Verizon Wireless. So for the next five days we enjoyed the quiet, the sunshine and the pleasant temperatures. Except for a short trip to the post office to mail out Easter goodies, we spent the time with several cook-outs, chores, staying up late and taking dog walks. On one walk Chuck met a young boy (about 10 years old) with his 11 month old female dog that bore a very strong resemblance to Lobo. When asked what type of dog it was, he replied: “She is 4/4 German Shepherd, ¾ Bulldog and ½ Labrador Retriever!” We left Brownwood Lake with sunny skies and headed toward Dallas, spending the night at a rest area between Tolar and Granbury. The temperature dropped overnight and the following morning (March 18th) it began to rain with thunder and lightning. For the rest of the trip we had heavy rain and winds. We were quite relieved to finally arrive in Wylie, TX at East Fork Park on Lavon Lake. We had wanted to stay at Lewisville Lake but with Easter weekend coming up, they were completely booked. We were soaked by the time we had unhooked and set up everything. The following day the weather was again sunny and mild but the lake had overflowed with the road to the boat harbor completely under water (see photos). We stayed at the campground that day, recovering from the physical and mental exertion of the day before. On Thursday we went to the German Deli for a few specialties including Leberkäse. Friday we stayed home but on Saturday we took a trip to Lewisville Lake and after not even being allowed to drive through the campground to look it over, we decided instead to extend our stay at Lavon Lake. On the day after we arrived at Lavon Lake we noticed that a pair of Killdeer (< - - Please click) had a nest in the grass about 20 feet from the RV (see photos on the left top of this page). We could watch them as we sat eating breakfast every morning but when we awoke on Easter morning they were gone and there was no sign of the eggs. We were quite certain that some animal had raided the nest, but after speaking with the ranger, we deduced that they had hatched and taken off for the nearby water. Our neighbor had pitched out pieces of bread for the pair but it was still there. We found out that Killdeer only eat insects. The mother will also often clean the nest of the eggshells while the little ones are hatching. If an animal had taken the eggs, it would have also eaten the bread around the nest. Not the traditional Easter meal but on Sunday we had steaks on the grill that were quite tasty. Monday was a quiet day at the campground. Tuesday we went to visit David Young and his wife Lee in Plano, whom we also visited last year (see March 2007 Travel Journal). David cooked some excellent bratwurst that he bought at the German butcher in Dallas. Home fries, red cabbage and a German beer rounded out the meal quite well. We spent the next few days dealing with FedEx who once again couldn’t find a campground, even though the attendants tell us that they deliver on a regular basis. The month of March ended on a musical note for us at the “Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall“ in Fort Worth where we attended a special performance by Lang Lang (< - - Please click). Program (< - - Please click). Go to his website at (www.langlang.com) (< - - Please click) for a demonstration of his talent! To be continued…… |
Travel Journal March 2008
Our Motto: Home is, where our RV is.
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